We have all seen the viral videos circulating on social media. Phones being thrown, dropped from extreme heights, boiled, used as chopping boards, and even getting run over by a Tesla Cybertruck. To be completely honest, as someone who first encountered the HONOR X9d 5G through these clips, I was genuinely skeptical. At some point, it starts to feel more like shock marketing than something rooted in real-world use.
That perspective changed after spending time with the HONOR X9d 5G myself. Being able to test and use the device firsthand made it clear that the brand is not encouraging users to repeat these extreme scenarios. Instead, HONOR is deliberately pushing the phone far beyond normal limits to show how much it can endure if accidents happen. These tests exist to demonstrate what the phone can withstand, not to suggest careless use. Knowing that the device survived conditions as extreme as being run over by a Tesla Cybertruck builds real confidence in its everyday durability.
We are fortunate enough to have our hands on the new HONOR X9d 5G in the Reddish Brown color variant with 256GB of storage, 12GB of RAM, and dual SIM support. The device is also available in Sunrise Gold and Midnight Black. In this hands-on review, we will walk you through everything from the unboxing experience to real-world performance and daily usability. If you are looking for a phone that can handle everyday accidents while still delivering solid performance, a large AMOLED display, dependable cameras, and long battery life, this guide will help you decide if the HONOR X9d 5G is the right choice for you.
Table of Contents
Unboxing/Accessories
The HONOR X9d 5G comes in a simple white box with a matte finish and a clean design. The model name is clearly displayed on the top, along with a partial image of the phone. The packaging feels sturdy and minimal, staying in line with HONOR’s straightforward approach.
Opening the box, the phone sits on top, followed by the accessories neatly arranged underneath. Inside, you get the HONOR X9d 5G unit, a SIM ejector tool, a quick start guide, a protective case, a USB-A to USB-C cable, and a 66W HONOR SuperCharge power adapter. A screen protector is also pre-applied, which is a nice touch and adds extra protection right out of the box.
The included case has a matte finish and offers decent protection, though it does cover the phone’s back design. It is practical for daily use, especially if you want to keep the phone protected from the start. Overall, the unboxing experience feels complete, with all the essentials included so you can start using the phone immediately.
Build Quality / Design
The HONOR X9d 5G sets a new standard for durability in the midrange smartphone category. It is the first smartphone to receive the SGS Triple-resistant Premium Performance Certification, which means it has been officially tested and proven to resist drops, dust, and water at levels most phones cannot match. Built to withstand everyday knocks and spills, this phone is engineered to give you extra confidence that it can handle whatever life throws at it.
HONOR uses Ultra-Bounce Anti-Drop Technology with a multi-layer cushioning structure and ballistic-grade damping layers to absorb and disperse impact energy, resulting in certified drop resistance of up to 2.5 meters. In laboratory tests, this design showed more than 100 percent improvement in impact durability compared to its predecessor. The tempered glass on the display is also ultra-tough, helping reduce scratches and resist breakage during accidental falls.
For water and dust protection, the X9d 5G carries IP69K, IP68, and IP66 ratings, which is the highest level of resistance available on a phone. This means it can handle splashes from heavy rain, exposure to high-pressure water, and even brief submersion without letting fine sand, dust, or liquid inside. Additional features like one-tap dust and water ejection, rainproof touch control, and glove-friendly touch control make it practical in real life, whether you’re caught in the rain, working outdoors, or wearing gloves during cooler weather.
It is important to stress that while this phone is extremely durable, it is not indestructible. Extreme tests you may have seen online, such as being run over by vehicles or subjected to severe abuse, are done in controlled settings and should not be attempted in daily life. The purpose of those tests is to show how much the X9d 5G can endure if accidents happen, not to encourage risky behavior.
Design-wise, the X9d 5G still looks sleek and modern. The flat display and flat sides improve grip and handling, and it feels comfortable even after long gaming or browsing sessions. The Reddish Brown variant we tested looked especially stylish and premium, with a texture that gives it a refined feel while also helping reduce fingerprints. This blend of rugged protection and elegant design means you get a phone that looks great and is built to last.
Display
The HONOR X9d 5G features a large 6.79-inch OLED display with a 1.5K resolution (2640 × 1200), delivering sharp visuals and rich colors that immediately stand out in daily use. With its 1.3mm slim bezels, the screen feels immersive whether you are watching videos, scrolling through social media, or gaming. The flat display also complements the phone’s overall design, making it easier to interact with and more comfortable to hold during long sessions.
One of the biggest highlights of this display is its 6000 nits peak brightness, which makes a noticeable difference when using the phone outdoors. Even under direct sunlight, content remains clear and readable, which is especially useful for users who are often on the go. The screen also supports a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate, ensuring smooth scrolling, fluid animations, and responsive gameplay, while intelligently adjusting to save power when high refresh rates are not needed.
For visual quality, the HONOR X9d 5G covers the DCI-P3 cinema-grade color gamut, producing vibrant yet balanced colors that work well for both media consumption and everyday use. Just as important, HONOR puts strong emphasis on eye comfort. The display includes 3840Hz risk-free dimming, Dynamic Dimming, AI Circadian Night Display, hardware low blue light, and AI Defocus Display. Together, these features help reduce eye strain during long viewing sessions, making the screen comfortable to use day or night, whether you are working, gaming, or binge-watching content.
Camera
The HONOR X9d 5G’s camera system is designed to be versatile and dependable without being overly complicated. At the heart of it is a 108-megapixel main camera with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS), which helps keep photos sharp and steady even when you’re shooting in low light or moving slightly while capturing the scene. The main lens also supports high-resolution capture, meaning images look detailed and clear when viewed on large screens or social feeds.
Supporting the main sensor is a 5-megapixel ultra-wide camera. While it does not have the same level of detail as the primary shooter, it expands your field of view and is useful for capturing landscapes, group shots, and wider scenes that don’t fit into a single frame. On the front, the 16-megapixel selfie camera delivers good detail for portraits and video calls, producing images that are crisp and suitable for social media.
HONOR adds creative and practical camera features to enhance the experience. You can use Underwater Photo Mode to capture pictures even when the phone is wet, and a suite of AI tools such as AI Eraser to remove unwanted objects, AI Eyes Open to fix blinked eyes in group shots, and AI Upscale to improve image clarity. These smart features help turn casual photos into more polished results without needing third-party apps.
For video, the rear camera can record up to 4K at 30 frames per second, which is plenty for everyday clips and social video content. Combined with image stabilization, this ensures smooth footage that’s easy to share. While some flagship phones push higher frame rates or zoom capabilities, the HONOR X9d 5G strikes a good balance, offering a camera system that feels capable across daily scenarios without being overwhelming.
Here are some sample images taken with the HONOR X9d 5G. These examples showcase its performance in various lighting conditions and scenarios:
Performance
Under the hood, the HONOR X9d 5G is powered by the Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 mobile platform, a next-generation midrange chipset designed for smooth everyday performance. This processor is optimized with AI system-level resource management, which helps balance power use and performance so the phone feels responsive whether you are switching between apps, browsing the web, or opening media. The result is a user experience that feels fluid and capable, even with multiple apps running at the same time.
Complementing the processor is 12GB of RAM, which gives you plenty of memory for multitasking and switching between social apps, productivity tools, and entertainment without frequent reloads. The combination of a capable chipset and abundant RAM means the HONOR X9d 5G can handle real-world tasks reliably, like streaming videos, navigating maps, and working on documents, without noticeable slowdowns or hiccups.
The phone also features an advanced VC cooling system that uses a mix of hexagonal graphite and stainless steel to dissipate heat efficiently. This helps keep the device from heating up too much during prolonged use, whether you are editing photos, watching long videos, or doing light content creation. Overall, the HONOR X9d 5G feels responsive and dependable in daily use, making it a solid choice for everyday tasks and heavier use alike.
Gaming Performance
For gaming, the HONOR X9d 5G delivers a smooth and reliable experience that fits well within the mid-range category. We tested the device with popular titles such as Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, Call of Duty: Mobile, and Farlight 84, all of which ran smoothly with stable performance. Touch response felt accurate, and the flat display made it easy to maintain control during fast-paced matches.
In Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, matches felt consistently smooth, with stable frame rates during team fights and no noticeable input delay during quick skill activations. The phone handled extended matches without any performance dips, making it easy to play back-to-back games. Meanwhile, Farlight 84, which is slightly more demanding, still ran well with steady performance, delivering smooth movement and responsive controls without overheating during longer sessions.
One of our longer tests involved Call of Duty: Mobile, where we played continuously for 2 hours and 39 minutes. Throughout the session, the phone maintained consistent performance without noticeable stutters or sudden frame drops. Thanks to the advanced VC cooling system, the device remained comfortable to hold, even during extended gameplay. We started this session at 100% battery, and after nearly three hours of gameplay, the battery was still at 78%. We will go deeper into battery performance later in this review, but this already highlights how efficiently the HONOR X9d 5G manages power during demanding use.
Benchmark Results
The HONOR X9d 5G delivers strong and well-balanced benchmark results that reflect its smooth real-world performance. In the AnTuTu Benchmark, the device scored 1,005,858, placing it firmly in the upper mid-range category. A closer look at the breakdown shows 368,085 for CPU, 162,417 for GPU, 220,942 for MEM, and 254,414 for UX, indicating a system that balances processing power, graphics performance, memory handling, and overall user experience effectively.
CPU performance was measured using Geekbench 6, where the HONOR X9d 5G achieved a single-core score of 1,090 and a multi-core score of 3,015. These numbers translate well into daily use, with the phone handling multitasking, productivity apps, and sustained workloads smoothly without noticeable slowdowns.
For graphics performance, the phone was tested using 3DMark, where it recorded an overall score of 3,800 with an average frame rate of 22.76 FPS. This supports our gaming experience, as the device maintained stable performance during extended play sessions without aggressive throttling. In productivity-focused testing, the HONOR X9d 5G also performed well in PCMark Work 3.0 Performance, scoring 14,222. This benchmark simulates everyday tasks such as web browsing, document editing, photo processing, and data handling, reinforcing that the device is not just built for entertainment but also reliable for work and daily use.
Storage
The HONOR X9d 5G comes with 256GB of internal storage, paired with 12GB of RAM, which is a generous setup for a mid-range smartphone. For most users, this amount of storage is more than enough to hold apps, photos, videos, and games without constantly worrying about space. During our testing, we were able to install multiple large games such as Call of Duty: Mobile and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, along with several other apps, and still had plenty of storage left.
The large RAM capacity also enhances the overall experience. With 12GB of RAM, the phone handles multitasking smoothly, keeping apps running in the background without frequent reloads. Switching between games, social media, and productivity apps felt seamless, even during longer usage sessions.
It is worth noting that the HONOR X9d 5G does not support expandable storage via a microSD card. While this may matter to users who rely on external storage, the built-in 256GB should be sufficient for most people. For users who prefer fast, internal storage and a clutter-free experience, the HONOR X9d 5G offers a practical and well-balanced storage setup.
Battery
The HONOR X9d 5G is equipped with a massive 8,300mAh silicon-carbon battery, which is easily one of its biggest highlights. This battery technology allows a higher capacity without making the phone feel overly bulky, and it shows in daily use. With mixed usage that includes social media, messaging, video streaming, and casual gaming, the phone comfortably lasts more than a full day, making it ideal for users with long and busy schedules.
Gaming endurance is especially impressive. During our testing, we played Call of Duty: Mobile continuously for 2 hours and 39 minutes, starting at 100% battery and ending at 78%. This level of efficiency, combined with stable performance and controlled heat, shows how well the phone manages power during demanding tasks. In benchmark testing, the HONOR X9d 5G also performed strongly in PCMark Work 3.0 Battery Life, lasting 18 hours and 54 minutes, further reinforcing its reputation for excellent battery life.
Charging is handled by 66W HONOR SuperCharge, which helps keep downtime to a minimum despite the large battery size. While there is no wireless charging, the phone supports reverse charging, which turned out to be more useful than expected. There was a time when we left our power bank at home and another phone was running low on battery. Using the HONOR X9d 5G, we were able to charge the other device without any hassle, something we found genuinely convenient. It is a small feature on paper, but in real life, it adds another layer of reliability to the overall experience.
Verdict
The HONOR X9d 5G stands out by proving that durability does not have to come at the expense of everyday usability. With its SGS Triple-resistant Premium Performance Certification, reinforced drop protection, and high-level water and dust resistance, it delivers peace of mind for users who want a phone that can survive real-life accidents. At the same time, it keeps a clean and stylish design, especially in the Reddish Brown variant, which looks premium and feels comfortable to hold even during long gaming or browsing sessions.
Beyond toughness, the phone performs well where it matters most. The Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 delivers smooth day-to-day performance, gaming remains stable during extended sessions, and the 120Hz OLED display makes everything feel fluid and enjoyable. The camera setup is dependable for everyday shots and content creation, while the large 8,300mAh battery easily carries the phone through long days. Small but thoughtful features like reverse charging also add to its real-world usefulness.
The HONOR X9d 5G is not indestructible, and it is definitely not meant to be abused. But it is built for real life, where accidental drops, spills, and long days happen. If you want a mid-range smartphone that feels reliable, lasts long on a single charge, performs well, and still looks good, the HONOR X9d 5G is a solid choice you can confidently use every day.
HONOR X9d 5G Specs
Display: 6.79-inch aluminosilicate glass–protected AMOLED screen with 120Hz refresh rate, 3,840Hz PWM dimming, 1.5K 2640 × 1200 resolution at ~427 ppi
CPU: 2.3GHz 4nm Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 octa-core processor
GPU: Adreno (TM) 810
RAM: 12GB
ROM: 256GB
Back Camera: 108MP f/1.75 with OIS and PDAF + 5MP f/2.2 ultra-wide + LED flash
Selfie Camera: 16MP f/2.45
Battery: 8,300mAh silicon-carbon battery with USB-C 66W HONOR SuperCharge and reverse charging
OS: Android 15 with MagicOS 9.0
Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6, 5G, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.2 BLE, OTG, NFC, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo, dual SIM (nano)
Sensors: Gravity, gyroscope, compass, acceleration, ambient light, proximity
Others: In-display fingerprint sensor, IP69K / IP68 / IP66 dust and water resistance, stereo speakers, USB-C
Colors: Reddish Brown, Sunrise Gold, and Midnight Black
Dimensions: 161.9 × 76.1 × 7.76 mm
Weight: 193 g
Price and Availability
The HONOR X9d 5G is available in three stylish color options: Reddish Brown, Sunrise Gold, and Midnight Black, giving users choices that fit both bold and classic tastes. The device is officially priced at PHP 18,999 for the 12GB RAM and 256GB storage variant in the Philippines.
The HONOR X9d 5G is currently available for pre-order at an introductory price of PHP 17,999 from January 9 to January 23. During this period, customers also get a chance to win a Tesla Cybertruck, along with select pre-order freebies. Interested buyers can pre-order the device at HONOR Experience Stores and partner retailers nationwide, as well as through online platforms such as Lazada, Shopee, and TikTok Shop.
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